Mustard pot sterling....really old or not so much?

[kdyson]

Hi,
I have recently inherited what I think is a mustard pot about 2.5 inches high and 3.5 inches long including the handle. it is sterling made in Chester I’m pretty sure it has no duty mark so is either before 1784 or after 1890…but I’m no expert at determining which “P” it is…and identifying the work as Victorian or…and as far as the silver smith goes all that remains is the oval…the actual mark to determine the maker is worn off… in any event the pot has blue glass inside to hold the mustard…wondering what the value is…if the marks are too hard to see I will endeavour to snap a close up that gives more detail of them.

many thanks

cheers

kate dyson

[silvermakersmarks]

The form of the Chester town mark on your mustard was introduced in 1779 so it can’t be earlier than that. The first letter p after that was a lower case one in 1790 and so would have had a duty mark. Without a duty mark we are therefore looking at P (upper case) for 1898 or P (italic) for 1915.

It is always best to bear in mind that Chester hallmarked silver before 1800 is almost as rare as the proverbial hen’s teeth. There must be some out there in the wild but the chances of seeing it are vanishingly small.

The value of your mustard pot, assuming no damage, is probably £30-£40 going by what similar items are making on eBay.

[kdyson]

Thanks so much for your help with this…I was leaning 1890 something…but thought I best ask…just in case!

cheers

kate dyson